Table of Contents


Section 4.3- Mineral Resources (back to homepage)

Vocabulary

gemstone- a hard colorful mineral that has a brilliant or glassy luster
alloy
-a solid mixture of two or more metals
ore-a rock that contains metal or economically useful mineral
smelting-the process of separating metal from ore

Diagrams

Saphires.jpgSaphires can be yellow or blue.

Outline
  • *The Uses of Minerals*
    • metal body
    • window glass of a car
  • *Gemstones*
    • hard, colorful
    • used for jewelry and decoration
    • used for grinding and polishing
    • used for mechanical machine
  • *Metals*
    • aluminum, iron, copper, silver are all metal
    • can be stretched into wire, flattened into sheets, or molded without breaking
    • is in metal filament in a light bulb, or steel grinders
  • Other Useful Minerals
    • we use minerals in fertilizers, medicine, and building materials
    • quartz can be used in glass
    • gypsum is used in cement
  • Ores
    • most copper in the world is from ores
  • Prospecting
    • they search for ore deposits
    • use special tools to find ore deposits
  • Mining
    • strip mining leaves scars
    • open-pit mining is big pits
    • shaft mining is getting ores from veins
  • Smelting
    • takes metal from ores
    • involves mixing in coke